


The Reading Lesson

by SeraphFighter



Series: Ember Hawke [1]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age II
Genre: F/M, Infidelity, Mild Smut, Sexual Tension, Slight Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Takes Place During Dragon Age II - Act 3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-18
Updated: 2020-09-18
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:28:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26522935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeraphFighter/pseuds/SeraphFighter
Summary: "We shouldn't be doing this," he gasped as Hawke tore her mouth away from his to press rough kisses against his jawline."We shouldn't," she agreed as he slipped his hands under her shirt touch her skin.During a weekly reading lesson with Fenris, a bottle of wine is consumed, emotions are spilled, and Ember Hawke and Fenris' relationship takes a turn.
Relationships: Fenris/Female Hawke, mentioned Anders/Female Hawke
Series: Ember Hawke [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1928353
Kudos: 24





	The Reading Lesson

The roaring fire and the glass of Agreggio held loosely in her hand warmed Ember Hawke from the inside out as she lounged on one of the library's plush chairs. The sound of the rain gently tapping against the windows mixed with Fenris' voice as he read aloud from The Book of Shartan:

"'At Shartan's word, the sky grew black with arrows. At our Lady's ten th...thou..." 

"Thousand," Hawke guided him lazily, finishing the dregs of her wine and reaching for the bottle to refill it. 

Fenris lifted his eyes from the pages of the book to meet hers and give a nod of thanks before returning to the task at hand. 

This was how their weekly reading lessons typically went--Hawke getting lost in the soothing timbre of Fenris' voice, staying silent herself until he needed guidance or correction. His reading skills had vastly improved; soon he probably wouldn't need her help at all. She had to admit, the thought made her upset. She had come to enjoy this weekly routine. These nights served as a good distraction from the chaos that seemed to follow her everywhere and she valued Fenris' company. 

"'Those who had been slaves were now free..." 

She allowed her mind to drift as she stared into the fire. She knew she should be paying more attention to what Fenris was reading; The Book of Shartan was an admittedly difficult text, and she had already had to help Fenris out several times. But no matter how hard she tried to focus her mind kept drifting back to the empty bed upstairs, where she had spent almost the entire past month sleeping alone. 

Anders was a rare sight these days outside of his clinic. He never used the key she had given him anymore and every time she went to the clinic to check on him the circles under his eyes seemed darker, his robes more loose on his bony frame. He was stiff in his affections and every time Hawke asked about his work with the rebellion, he dodged her questions. 

His sudden withdraw from her not only hurt; it also pissed her off. 

"Hawke? Are you listening?"

She blinked and turned her gaze back to Fenris. He had set the book aside and was staring at her, his brow furrowed. 

"Hm? Yeah I'm listening, keep reading," she forced a smile onto her face and motioned for him to continue. 

Fenris' mouth tightened and Hawke knew he didn't believe her. "You're distracted." 

"Fine, you caught me. My mind is elsewhere right now." 

"Do you...want to talk about it?" Fenris asked slowly. 

Hawke waved her hand dismissively. "It's nothing you'll want to hear about." 

Fenris stared at her, his shoulders set in determination. "Try me."

She sighed and stood from her chair, making her way to her desk to absently rifle through the various papers she had strewn about. "Perhaps it's just the fact that Anders seems to be more in love with his cause than me now."

Fenris scoffed from behind her and Hawke turned to scowl at him. "See, I said it's nothing you care about."

"Hawke, of course I care. But you know my opinion of Anders." His watched her closely, fully closing The Book of Shartan and setting it aside. 

She snorted into her wine glass as she raised it to her lips. She took a long drink before answering, "Yes, that he's an apostate abomination who is fighting a lost cause. I'm starting to wonder if you're right about that."

Fenris was quick to contend, "You don't mean that."

Her shoulders slumped as she stared into the red depths of her glass. "No, I suppose I don't. I don't know what I believe about him anymore," she admitted. 

"Do you want to know what I believe?" Fenris asked. 

Hawke glanced up at him through her lashes. "Go on." 

"I believe," Fenris stood up, setting his book down on the end table and approaching her, "that Anders doesn't realize what he has right in front of him." 

Something warm bloomed in the pit of her stomach as Fenris continued, 

"Any man would be lucky to call you theirs and he is stupid for not realizing that," Fenris stopped a couple of feet away from her, his eyes flashing with an intensity that captivated her. 

Silence hung heavy in the air between them. Hawke's fingertips tingled with the urge to reach and out touch him, to trace the lines of lyrium marking his skin, brush the stray hairs away from his forehead. 

Perhaps it was just the wine talking. Maybe tomorrow, her heart would be back to yearning for the mage who had first stolen her heart, but now seemed so far away. But right now, her desire to be close to Fenris was so intense her knees felt weak and she had to lean back against her desk to steady herself. 

"Flatterer," she croaked, her voice coming out shakier than she intended. She downed the last of the wine and set the glass aside then gripped the edge of the desk in her sweaty palms. 

The corner of Fenris' mouth quirked up in a small smile. "I only speak the truth." He stared at her for a moment then swallowed and stepped back, glancing towards the windows, "I ah, should be going. It is getting late."

He started to turn around as if to leave and without thinking, Hawke reached out and grabbed his wrist. Fenris tensed up and she immediately cursed herself; she knew better than to touch him without permission. But he wasn't glowing, which was a good sign. 

"Stay," she told him, letting go of his wrist slowly.

"Hawke, I shouldn't." His voice was tight and he wasn't meeting her gaze. 

"It's raining," she said, as if that explained everything she wanted to say. After a moment she added quietly, "And he doesn't come home anymore." 

Fenris was silent and Hawke was afraid she had overstepped. Then, faster than she could comprehend, Fenris closed the distance between them and slammed his mouth against hers. It was rough; their teeth clashed and Hawke accidentally bit into his bottom lip. Still, she carded her hands through his hair and he gripped her waist and pulled her closer. 

"We shouldn't be doing this," he gasped as Hawke tore her mouth away from his to press rough kisses against his jawline. 

"We shouldn't," she agreed as he slipped his hands under her shirt touch her skin. 

Still, neither of them stopped. 

It wasn't slow and gentle--it was rough and hurried, with both of them not even taking the time to fully strip before Fenris was inside of her. Fenris bit at her neck and shoulder while Hawke drug her fingers down his back. Her desk was going to be a mess afterwards but she didn't care. She'd clean it up later. 

"Hawke," Fenris gasped into her skin when he was close. 

"Ember," she corrected him with a moan as his fingers slid down between them. 

"Ember," he echoed with a grunt, slanting his mouth back against hers to swallow her moans. 

After, they collapsed onto the couch in a sweaty heap. They didn't exchange words; instead they absently traced patterns over each others skin and caught their breath. 

Hawke didn't know how long they had been lying there before Fenris nudged her in the side. "We should probably move to somewhere more private," he murmured by her ear.

She yawned, stretching out against him. She had been close to falling asleep. "Probably," she agreed. The last thing they needed was Bodahn or Orana walking in on them. 

They untangled themselves from each other and dressed. They cleaned up Hawke's desk and made sure nothing looked out of place before sneaking up the stairs and collapsing on her bed. Hawke fell asleep with her head pressed to Fenris' chest. 

When she awoke the next morning, Fenris was gone. 

She drew the quilt closer to her body and rolled over, pressing her face into the pillow. Where she had grown used to finding the clean scent of soap and cool touch of the sheets, she now found the smell of Fenris and the warmth left from his body. The same warm feeling bloomed in her stomach. 

She would worry about what that meant later.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing any kind of smut, so I hope it's not terrible. It might be rough, but Ember has been on my mind a lot lately and I wanted this to prelude how Ember and Fenris end up together post-game (which I will hopefully write about soon). Also to clarify, Ember and Anders are together one more time before the climax of Act 3 (which I will also hopefully write about) and that is how Ember ends up pregnant.  
> Your comments and kudos are much appreciated, and I will see you on the next one!


End file.
